Miami Heat forward LeBron James passes the ball over New Jersey Nets' Kris Humphries (43) and DeShawn Stevenson (92) during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012, in Newark, N.J. The Heat defeated the Nets 101-90.

NEWARK, N.J. — LeBron James returned to the lineup and scored 22 of his 32 points in the first quarter, and the Miami Heat rolled to a 101-90 victory over the New Jersey Nets on Saturday night despite playing without Dwyane Wade.

Wade missed his third straight game with a bruised left foot, but James had the game under control by the time his All-Star teammate arrived at his seat on the bench.

James made his first seven shots, leaping high for dunks, lobs and blocked shots and showing no effects from the sprained left ankle that forced him to miss a game. The NBA's leading scorer added nine assists and seven rebounds.

Chris Bosh added 16 points after a slow start for the Heat, who won their third straight and ran the NBA's best record to 8-1. They hope to have Wade back when they move to the West for the final three games of a five-game trip.

Kris Humphries tied a career high with 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the Nets, who shot just 33.7 percent in front of a sellout crowd of 18,711. Deron Williams had 10 points and 10 assists but was just 4 of 16 from the field.

KNICKS 103, PISTONS 80: At Auburn Hills, Mich., Amare Stoudemire scored 22 points and Mike Bibby added 16 to lead New York to an easy victory over Detroit. Detroit guard Rodney Stuckey sat out with a groin injury, and the Pistons were also without forwards Austin Daye and Charlie Villanueva, who had sore ankles.

THUNDER 98, ROCKETS 95: At Houston, Kevin Durant hit a jumper with 22 seconds left and nailed two free throws. Durant finished with 27 points and six rebounds.

HAWKS 109, BULLS 94: At Atlanta, Josh Smith scored 25 points, Joe Johnson and Vladimir Radmanovic each added 17 and Atlanta beat Chicago to snap the Bulls' six-game winning streak. John Lucas III had 14 of his team-high 16 points in the fourth quarter for Chicago, which never led.